Thursday, March 15, 2012

If At First You Don't Succeed...

Lovelies, here's the final (non-bias), cerise, wool-blend, Ginger skirt:

Here's the full skirt... (The hem looks uneven in this shot but I assure you it's an illusion!)

Ooooh, pretty French seam!

And that's my seam binding treatment of the hem. I bought the mint seam binding on Etsy. And I invisibly catch-stitched the hem this time.

You have to trust me when I say that, when it's on me, the waistband (really the whole zipper area) is not crinkly (as it looks in this photo). As mentioned, my proportions are different than the dress form's. What I will say is that, next time, I'm going to make sure I tighten up the waistband at the zipper. I think it's good to have to pull a bit on the waist band to meet the zipper (and then to be sure you vertically seam very close to the zipper). Every time I make a waist band, I learn a bit more. I could also stand to press this a bit better...


And finally, the inner waistband where the zipper meets it. I Hong Kong finished the back seam around the zipper. I think it looks rather chic. You can vaguely see the black organza interfacing around the edges of the zip. I've tried to clip them closely but I guess I'll need to go back and do it again...

In truth, next time I'm buying pink serger thread and calling it a day. The finished garment will be much less bulky (not that it's noticeably so when I'm wearing it) and it'll take 3 minutes, as opposed to 3 hours, to finish seams. Nice to know I can do it though.

Coming up, a recap of the Spring Basics Palette!

30 comments:

  1. It's lovely! Are we going to see it on your body? Maybe with the floral tie-neck T?

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    1. That's exactly how I first intended to wear it - and how I did wear it today! I will show that outfit...

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  2. Well, even though it took some work getting there, the finished skirt is gorgeous, so it was definitely worth it. :-) I'm going to have to go back and look through the comments about zippers and bias though, because someday I may be brave enough to try it myself. :-)

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    1. Thank you! Remember, this is the non-bias version. So don't kill yourself inserting a zipper in a bias cut skirt.

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  3. So pretty! Love the colour. I bet it's even better in person.

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    1. Thank you! I got so many compliments today when I wore it. It's a very cheerful skirt. :-)

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  4. Yay! It looks GREAT! All those extra details are wonderful. And your zipper especially looks good!

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    1. Thank you! Ah, that zipper really took it out of me.

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  5. Well, it's lovely! I take it you didn't do the raised, boned waist this time, though?

    So glad you got some success after that battle! :) (and sorry my blog ate your comment, it's not even in the spam so I'm not sure what happened. :( )

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    1. No, not this time. I knew I could do it, and that it wasn't that value added on this skirt. I'm going to blog about it.

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  6. Oooooooh, pretty ! Very mod and very classy at the same time.

    Re : wavy zippers, I managed to salvage mine by doing a botched swayback alteration and shaving an inch of the top and having it sit on the hips. Don't know if it the "sitting lower" or the "no more swayback" that did the trick, but no wave in sight anymore. Yeepeee :)

    But still, yours is to die for :)

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    1. Love that description of my skirt! Thank you.

      That's an interesting fix. I have never made a sway back adjustment, so I'm not sure if that would have made it easier, or more difficult.

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  7. That is a fabulous and very wearable skirt. Love the color, and love your persistence

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    1. Thank you! It really is wearable, even if it's practically neon :-)

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  8. I'm so glad you were able to salvage your remaining fabric! The finished skirt is lovely! And the inside looks fab, although I totally feel ya on the extra time spent - I'd say it was worth it :)

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    1. It's insane how much effort the finishing adds to the project. As much as the fitting and all the rest of the sewing?! Thank you for thinking it's worth it. I do rather like it.

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  9. You're the champ! You deserve a trophy.

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    1. Well, I don't know about that. But maybe a gorgeous new dress that I win in a giveaway? :-)

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  10. Wow you finished that quick! It looks awesome. I can't wait to start my Ginger skirt now.

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    1. I actually made this over three evenings after work. If I can swing that, you can certainly do it over a weekend. Start now!

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  11. It looks great and I love the word "cerise." I just do!

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  12. It really does look lovely and I will NOT be trying a bias version with a zipper for a LONG time. Thanks for the warning.

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    1. Just remember, if you do try one, that you have to pull out all the bells and whistles. :-)

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  13. Beautiful! This really looks great! It's such a lovely color, and the finishing is gorgeous!

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